Category Archives: The Writers Circle

03.12.18
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The Writers Circle: Music

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

Do you like to have music playing while you are writing? What is your favorite music to listen to while writing? Do you choose your music based on the type of writing you are doing? 

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

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02.05.18
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The Writers Circle: Favorite Books

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

Reading is a critical part of a writer’s life. Today we’d like to discuss the favorite books, stories, poetry or other works you have read. What is it about these works that you found so exciting or compelling? Did any of these books inspire you to start writing?

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

01.08.18
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The Writers Circle: 2018 in Preview

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

The dawn of a new year is an arbitrary point in time, yet it is one we often use to reset or restart aspects of our lives. In that mindset, what are your writing, editing or publishing goals for 2018? Are you starting any new, exciting projects? How can Today’s Author help you to achieve your creative goals for 2018?

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

10.16.17
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The Writers Circle: NaNoWriMo 2017

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

National Novel Writing Month begins again on November 1! Many members of the Today’s Author community are annual participants in NaNoWriMo or the Young Writer’s Program (for students in high school or younger), so today we’d like to see how many folks are planning to participate this year.  Some rule changes a few years ago opened the event up to works-in-progress as well, so if you haven’t participated due to the old requirement for a new work of fiction, you may want to take another look!

Please take a moment to let us know if you are participating and what you are considering writing for NaNoWriMo 2017. Additionally, if you have any questions about NaNoWriMo, please ask — some of our members are staff volunteers for the event and can help you get the answers you need.

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

09.11.17
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The Writers Circle: Changing Grammar Rules

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

A question by a writer friend:

My editor keeps changing my “he said” or “she went” phrases to “they said” and “they went”. He also keeps changing sentences and making them end in a preposition:  “The person with whom I spoke” becomes “The person I spoke with.”  Is this a universal change in the writing rules we are seeing? 

My friend wanted to hear what other writers were experiencing in this regard, so I’m posing it here.  What changes in long-held grammar rules have you noticed? Are your editors pushing you toward using the singular “they” instead of gender-specific pronouns? Where do you choose to hold onto the rules we learned in school and where to let go of them?

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

08.21.17
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The Writers Circle: Eclipse Day, 2017!

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

Today, a large part of the continental United States will experience a total or partial solar eclipse. Many people are flocking to areas that will experience the total eclipse while others are planning to experience it at events closer to their homes.  Will you be using this eclipse to help inspire your writing in some way? What are your favorite stories that feature solar eclipses (if you have any)?

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

07.10.17
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The Writers Circle: Handwritten or Typed

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

When you begin working on a new project – be it to start the actual drafting or to start building an outline – do you have a tendency do this with pen and paper? Or do you tend to do this on a computer? Do you find your level of productivity with the initial work on a new project to be better if you write it out by hand or if you type/draw it on the computer?

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

05.15.17
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The Writers Circle: Sounds or Silence

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

Some writers prefer to write in complete, uninterrupted silence. Others listen to their favorite music in order to set the best atmosphere for writing. Still others prefer or need to go to a noisy cafe to write.  What about you? Today we want to hear about the environment which works best for you when you want to write.

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

04.24.17
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The Writers Circle: The Power of Words

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

Today let’s talk about the power of writing. Has something you’ve written been so powerful that your entire process of writing has changed? What have you read or written that has changed your life in any way, good or bad?

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.

04.17.17
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The Writers Circle: What’s Your Point of View

TWC
One of our goals here at Today’s Author is to help all of the writers among us to do what we love to do: write. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by talking to each other and learning from each other.  Our Writers Circle series is designed to do just that – provide a chance for us to discuss writing, editing and publishing questions.

This week’s topic is:

We make many decisions about characters, plot and settings when we are writing. But one of the most important decisions we make is the choice of our narrative point of view. The choice of first, second or third person point of view impacts how we as writers interact with the story as well as how our readers interact with it.  What goes into your decision of which point of view you will use in your story? Have you ever gotten part way into the story only to realize you made the wrong choice for point of view? What tips do you have for the Today’s Author community for how to best determine the optimal point of view for a given story?

Let’s discuss this in the comments and see what our community thinks.